December 2017 Babies

Baby #5 with teenagers Toyota Sequoia?

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teamgreenway24 wrote:

We are expecting baby #5 and need to upgrade our Toyota Highlander. We love it but it's getting small with growing teenagers and there is no way we can fit three kids in the 3rd row with two still in booster seats. Our kids will be 15, 13, 11, and 9 when baby boy arrives. Three boys and a girl. Our oldest is 5' 10" and the youngest two kids are petite and still in booster seats. Lol.

We were thinking of upgrading to a used Sequoia that seats 8 and has a much bigger 3rd row. Our kids are very active in sports and church so we are constantly shuttling back and forth. Plus carpooling with other parents and lugging soccer/football/softball etc. gear.

Our oldest will be driving in a year but I don't like the idea of splitting up and driving 2 cars. However, we have shared custody of our 4 kids so it's every other week that we have them. But the schedule can change since their dad is not super involved.

My commute is only a mile to work and we do like to vacation together as a family.

My family had a Toyota Land Cruiser when I was growing up. We absolutely loved. My mom, who now drives a Lexus, says it was still her favorite vehicle. There were 4 kids in our family, but we were heavily involved in church and with friends, so she loved the option of having all the seats down and still being able to store stuff in the back. We are all grown up now and having kids of our own. They sold the land cruiser a few years ago, and we all still regret it. Even with grown ups, we loved that if we all wanted to go out, we could still squish into one car. Anyway, I know the land cruiser is slightly different from the sequoia, but I think they are basically the same size. I say do it! You will love having the extra space, even when your teenagers become college students, etc. We had over 250k miles on that car, and it was still going strong. So plan on it lasting a looong time.

Have you considered a minivan? I love Toyota vehicles as that's all I ever drove for 13 years but I just bought a Honda Odyssey and I absolutely love it. It has more space than we will ever use, family friendly, comfy smooth drive, and the sliding doors are just awesome. You just can't beat the gas mileage either. It had deep storage in the back and side storage as well and the back row lays flat/level with floor so if you need the storage you have it. We just traded my highlander for it and it was the best purchase I ever made. I would have had one long before children if I knew how convenient it was. Just my 2 cents :) I never thought I, of all people, would be driving a mini van. My friends still don't believe me lol

Thanks for your reply! I have heard good things about both the Land Cruiser and the Sequoia. I think it will be worth it in the long run. Was the Land Cruiser day difficult to maneuver/park? I like sitting higher up but really large/long vehicles intimidate me. Lol. I briefly had a Lincoln Navigator several years ago, but it felt like a bus. I can drive my husband's Toyota Tundra no problem.

I originally had an odyssey for 10 years and loved it but it became too small as well. With two teenagers, 2 booster seats, and a car seat we need that extra seat to fit an adult just in case I need to go back to tend to the baby. The third row is hard for tall teenage boys. Lol.

The reason my mom loved the land cruiser so much was that it was a large SUV, but "drove like a small car." It could turn on a dime (my dad pulled countless u-turns at intersections on road trips to California), and was very easy to park. We had always owned suburbans before that, and my mom hated driving and parking them. I also learned to drive in the land cruiser, and it was very easy and forgiving.

I will only have 4 when this baby arrives but I currently have a Tahoe and am thinking it's not gonna work! My boys are 11, 8 and 5. My 11 year old hates the 3rd row bc he feels squished. That will only get worse as he grows. Plus alllll the sports gear, lawn chairs etc. and then thinking about adding a big infant carrier and stroller and groceries.... so I think we're either gonna get a suburban or a expedition EL. My MIL has the long expedition and the floor is flat all the way, front to back, which gives a lot more legroom for bigger kids in the 2nd and 3rd rows. I've had the Honda Odyssey before and that could be an option again too.... I'm gonna try and wait and see what it's like after the baby is here. Oh and we also have a huge dog.

I wonder if they sequoia would have enough room for cargo?? And also I hear they have horrible gas mileage?? Worse than all the other big SUVs.

Yes I know the gas mileage will stink in pretty much any SUV. I haven't checked out the cargo space yet. I have heard people love their suburbans but I worry about the reliability after several years. That's what I like about Hondas and Toyotas. I know the expedition L is bigger but it's also quite similar to the Lincoln Navigator L, which I had briefly. Yes it was plenty of leg room space but I didn't feel comfortable driving it. Unfortunately once you get three good size rows the cargo space gets pretty small.

What I like about the Sequoia is the reclining seats in the 3rd row & the split rows in the 2nd & 3rd rows. Makes it easy for kids to climb to the back and to fold down a seat for extra storage space.

Sometimes I just think we should get a church bus. Lol. Or wait for the revamped Volkswagen VW bus!

That's true... the expedition is probably just like the navigator. Have you considered a minivan at all? I had the Odyssey for 4 years. The back seats recline and the arrangement of the seats is so flexible. It is like driving a car rather than a big SUV feeling like a bus or truck. I actually really missed the ease of the minivan when I got this Tahoe last summer. I am still not sure what I'll get this time.. van or the big expedition maybe.

Oh my friend who has 2 teens, an elementary aged kiddo, 4 and 1 year old has the sequoia. So maybe that's the best fit!

Yes we had an Odyssey for almost ten years but it eventually got too small in the 3rd row for the teenage boys. Often we are driving the kids plus a friend or two of our teenagers. The teenagers are pretty much grown men in height. Lol.

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